I can identify with the feeling as a white person that I have no culture, that any uniqueness I possess is washed away in the homogeny of "white girl". I heard several people from different racial identities talk about a similar feeling of having their identifies erased and seen only as "black" or "either Chinese or Japanese". For me, it has allowed me to blend in, be part of the norm and allow me to move through the world largely unencumbered. For people with darker skin, it has hurt them. I first became aware of this in a group dynamics graduate class when I realized I didn't really know where my family came from earlier than my parents' generation. It never mattered to me as a white American. And, several other people in the class who were part of the "norm" where they came from expressed similar lacks of identity. I was jealous of those who knew where their families were from, who they identified with, and what "community" they belonged to. Since then, I've begun to learn where in Europe my parents' families are from and be able to understand the heritage I was given.
